GST Notice Sent to Email Valid Despite Upload under wrong head on portal

KVJ Builders & Developers Private Limited Vs State Tax Officer (Kerala High Court)

The Kerala High Court addressed a petition filed by KVJ Builders & Developers Private Limited challenging a GST order issued under Section 73 of the Kerala State Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, for the financial year 2018-19. The petitioner, a government contractor, claimed that a show cause notice (SCN) issued on December 23, 2023, was not noticed because it was uploaded in the “additional notices and orders” tab of the GST portal instead of the main “notices and orders” tab. As a result, the petitioner failed to respond or appear for the determination, leading to the issuance of an order imposing a significant tax liability. The petitioner argued that this constituted a lack of proper service of notice, citing a previous decision of the same court in M/s. Ramanattu Motor Corp, where a similar issue of incorrect tab uploading led to the setting aside of an order due to a violation of natural justice principles.

However, the court distinguished the present case from the Ramanattu Motor Corp precedent. While acknowledging that the initial SCN was uploaded in the “additional notices and orders” tab, the court noted that a reminder notice was subsequently sent to the petitioner via email on April 5, 2024. The petitioner did not dispute the receipt of this email. The court reasoned that upon receiving the reminder email, the petitioner had the opportunity to check for any outstanding notices on the portal and respond accordingly. The failure to take any action despite receiving the email reminder led the court to conclude that there was, in fact, a valid service of notice. Consequently, the court held that the impugned order was not passed in violation of the principles of natural justice. The writ petition was dismissed, with the court reserving the petitioner’s right to pursue any available statutory remedies as per the law.